Combining Touch Control with ArtNet in WLED via Usermod – Is This Possible?

Usermods
1

Hi everyone,

I’m currently working on a project involving a light staff (think of a glowing LED stick used on a stage or during a performance), and I’m exploring how I can control it using both WLED and external ArtNet signals — ideally with a custom usermod.

Here’s what I’m trying to achieve:

  • The staff should respond to a touch input (connected to a GPIO pin on the ESP).
  • When someone touches and holds the staff, it should gradually increase in brightness, potentially going through a few blinking or pulsing phases.
  • When there’s no touch, the brightness should slowly return to a low idle level, say around 3%.

Now the trickier part:
The ESP also receives ArtNet data during live stage performances, which I want to use to control color and per-pixel brightness. But — I’d like the overall/master brightness to still be controlled by the touch sensor logic in WLED. So in other words:

  • ArtNet defines what colors and effects show on the staff.
  • But unless someone is touching the staff, the lights remain very dim (3%).
  • When touched, the master brightness slowly ramps up to 100% (or close), letting the ArtNet visuals shine through fully.

Has anyone here implemented something similar with a usermod?
Is it technically possible to “mix” ArtNet input with a user-defined brightness override in this way?

I’d really appreciate any pointers or experiences — even partial ideas!

Thanks in advance :slight_smile: